A hooded figure rode up to the gates of the once great and beautiful Castle Demoan. It now looked like a timeworn pile of rocks. After a few exchange of words with the guards, they were forced to escort the new comer in to see their lord. They entered the throne room to find Demoan on his seat. One leg sprawled out before him and the other flung over the arm. A handful of men stood about laughing and joking over the day’s events. Little did they know it was just about to get even more exciting yet. They were all so enthralled with their lord’s story, no one had noticed the gate guards escorting the stranger through the high double wooden doors. “Excuse me my Lord,” the cloaked figure came to kneel before him, “I bring word from young Master Corrigan.” The room fell eerily quiet at hearing a woman’s voice come from beneath the hood. Demoan instantly sat straight up, eyes locked on the fair hand holding a letter out to him. His temper started to burn at the outrage of her being within the walls of his home. “Do my eyes and ears deceive me,” he glared at the two guards who let her in, “or have you? You let a woman through my gates and into my castle!” “She wouldn’t surrender the message to us my lord.” One man spoke in a shaky voice. “She insisted she had to deliver it herself.” “Master Sebastian Corrigan instructed that it not leave my hands,” the woman informed, “until it was safely placed in yours.” “Let’s see what young Master Corrigan finds so damn important,” he snatched the letter from her, “that he would mock me by sending a woman to deliver it. I would have expected better of him most of all.” Demoan ripped the seal from the piece of parchment, his eyes still fixed on the new comer. Once it was open, they drifted down to focus on the words written there. The more he read on, the more his lips turned up at the corners. When finished, he let out a loud snarling laugh and handed the letter to the man on his immediate right. Eyes once again focused on the still hooded woman before him. “What kind of a fool does Corrigan think you are?” He snickered, handing it back. “He won’t think anything of the sort,” he replied, “if he knows what’s good for him.” “And what is it that only the two of you find so funny this afternoon?” Another man entered through the side door. “Listen to this Morgan.” Demoan held the paper up to read out loud. “Lord Demoan, I gratefully will my allegiance to you should it comes to a battle in your campaign to keep your land. You know I have never agreed with my father and most of his ideals. To show my faithfulness, I send you a gift.” “And,” he glanced about, “what was the gift?” “Hold on,” He snapped, “I was getting to that part. Now where was I? Oh yeah. To show my faithfulness, I send you a gift and for yours, all I ask for is the release of my father. Before you stands my sister, the Lady Corrina Corrigan, she is now yours. Sincerely, Master Sebastian Corrigan.” Corrina couldn’t believe her ears. Her step brother had not mentioned anything to her about delivering a gift much less that gift would be her. The only reason she agreed to deliver the message was because she wanted to see Demoan with her own eyes once again. Arriving a few days earlier, she’d heard plenty of stories about how cruel he’d become over the years since the death of his mother then again the suicide of his sister. There was even a rumor that a simple gaze in his eyes could turn a person’s heart to stone. At first she couldn’t bring herself to believe any of it was true, but seeing him now in person, she knew at least some of it was. With a few strokes of his quill and ink, Sebastian set her fate. Fear of what her life would now be with Demoan rushed over her and panic set in. She jumped to her feet and rushed for the doors only to be caught by the same two men who ushered her in. Had Corrina known what the letter contained before she reached the gates, she would have gladly handed it over and rode away to let her step father rot in the dungeons below the castle floors. “Apparently the lady had no idea she was the gift.” Morgan nodded in her direction. “What should we do with her my lord?” The guard asked. “Throw her in the dungeon with her father,” he waved them away, “and the rest of you get out.”
Posted on: Thu, 15 Aug 2013 22:12:55 +0000
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